>>> View video of Radiation Oncology at Olathe Health Cancer Center
Radiation therapy is a cancer treatment that uses high doses of radiation to kill cancer cells and stop the spread of them. Radiation used in cancer treatment works similar to that of an X-ray to see inside your body. The difference is that this radiation is given at higher doses.
Many people with cancer need radiation therapy. More than half of people with cancer will receive radiation therapy. Sometimes it may be the only treatment that a cancer patient needs. OMC has invested in state-of-the-art radiation therapy technology, including linear accelerators, CT simulator, treatment planning system and physics equipment.
Radiation therapy itself is not painful. The side effects that you can get from the therapy can cause pain or discomfort. Our support team works with each patient to provide care and support to address treatment side effects.
Olathe Health has invested in state-of-the-art radiation therapy technology at the cancer center, including a linear accelerator, CT simulator, treatment planning system and physics equipment.
The linear accelerator is one of the most sophisticated radiation technologies available. It allows for enhanced speed and accuracy when delivering targeted radiation—accurate to the millimeter—to allow for even more precise targeting and treatment of tumors. In some cases, this will reduce the number of treatments needed by patients. The linear accelerator allows for additional types of therapies that use exact localization of tumors in the body to treat small, precise radiation fields and requires only a few minutes to complete in outpatient settings.
Stereotactic body radiation therapy is a procedure that uses the linear accelerator to deliver fast and accurate high-dose radiation treatment. The procedure uses a specially designed system for exact localization of tumors in the body to treat small, precise radiation fields. It is commonly used to treat many types of cancers, including lung, prostrate, pancreas, liver and metastatic disease.
SGRT is a system that tracks a patient’s position before and during radiation therapy, to aid in setup and treatment accuracy. An entirely non-invasive and contact-free technology, SGRT uses 3D stereo cameras to track the skin’s surface and compare it to the ideal position in the treatment plan with submillimetric accuracy.
It can automatically signal for the treatment delivery system to pause the radiation beam if the patient moves out of the desired position, and it eliminates the need for radiation therapy tattoos or headframes and closed masks for SRS.
Olathe Health offers breast brachytherapy treatment, a targeted form of internal radiation, for certain types of breast cancers. Brachytherapy delivers high doses of radiation to targeted areas of the body using a special device that is implanted by our breast surgeon. This targeted radiation minimizes exposure to healthy tissue, and may cause fewer side effects. Treatment time is usually shorter, averaging about five days instead of four to six weeks with traditional, external radiation therapy.
For more information, contact a nurse navigator at 913-791-4240.
Every person’s journey with cancer is unique. Your cancer is not like anyone else’s, and your treatment shouldn’t be either. At Olathe Health, we are focused on you, and we have the most comprehensive treatments, cutting-edge technology, supportive services and resources available.
A few of our areas of expertise include breast cancer and reconstruction, colon cancer, lung cancer and skin cancer.
Olathe elementary school principal, Kim Thorup, was diagnosed with breast cancer on May 2. Because of radiation treatment new to Olathe Health Cancer Center, she’s healed and back in her office in time for the first day of school just three months later.
